When Anna revealed the conversation she had had with the other woman, it scared me. What if the other woman told the game master everything. He would never trust Anna again. I knew Anna had taken a great risk with the way she dealt with the woman in white, who was apparently deeply in love with the game master. I had already told Anna that even a tiny mistake could send us on the path to death. She had taken a huge risk in spite of that. What if the other woman convinced the game master that Anna had ulterior motives? What if he spied on us without our knowledge and my nightmare came true?
Initially, my plan was to let Anna come close to the game master. I know it was evil of me to think that Anna would do that for our cause but that would be our last resort to bring in clues. Maybe, the woman in white was doing the same thing. Maybe, she was trying to save someone too. There was no way to find out. I asked Anna to keep her distance from the other woman until things calmed down. It was fairly obvious however that Anna didn't plan to follow through.
The next day, when Anna crossed paths with the other woman, their equation had changed. The other woman seemed closer to Anna, as if she believed her. If I were in Anna's place, I would have assumed it is part of her plan to catch us red handed. Anna was different. She believed that her monologue had really touched the other woman's heart. She believed that the reason the other woman was trying to come so close to her was because she needed help. She feared for the woman's safety. She knew very well that the game master was an evil man. She knew no one could ever be happy with a murderer. In my eyes, the other woman was a murderer too. She killed Lila. No matter how hurt she was or how much help she needed, I would never trust her and I knew that.
Anna found a quiet place to speak to the woman. She said, "are you okay dear? You seem quite shaken. I am sorry if what I said that day hurt you. I didn't mean to do that. I let my emotions clog my mind and spilled my word-vomit onto you. I am truly sorry for calling your survival instinct a cheap move. You did what was right to survive. Anyway, I am here if you need me."
As soon as Anna finished her sentence, the other woman fell to her feet. She started sobbing excessively. Anna tried to calm her down. She tried to tell her that someone will hear them but the other woman was heart-broken. She would not stop crying. Anna lifted her up and gave her a hug. I really liked that about Anna. She didn't even know the woman and she tried to comfort her. Most people are rude in such situations, but Henry's Anna was different.
Anna said, "okay now stop crying. I am here for you. tell me what's wrong. This is a safe space, I promise. "
The other woman replied, "you were right. He doesn't love me. I am a fool. I was so naïve to have ever fallen for his lies. I always wondered why he didn't trust me but I never questioned him. He didn't even show me his face. Every time he touched me, I had a blind fold on. I want to wash every inch of my body. Every part he touched I want to cut off. I have betrayed myself and I have betrayed all those girls I let him kill. In fact, I killed them. I am no better than him. I am a murderer. I let those innocent girls be shot in front of me. I decided their fate like it was a game. I was trying so hard to impress him that I stooped down to a level even lower to him. Last night, I tried to take my blind fold off. I told him he could trust me. He hit me. He threw me to the ground like garbage. I had never felt so ashamed. I knew at that moment; I made a grievous mistake. I was in love with a monster. Do you know what the worst part is? I still love him. What kind of a woman am I? I let a man degrade me, I let him degrade my morals. He turned my sweet soul into something I will never recognize when I look in the mirror. I have failed everyone. I have failed you, and I don't even know who you are. I am sorry for the way I treated you yesterday. You said you will help me. Please, help me. I promise I will do whatever you say. Just tell me how I can make up for my sins. Just tell me how I can put an end to this."
If I were Anna, I would never have trusted a word coming out of a murderer's mouth. Like I said, Anna was different. She immediately held the other woman's hand. She told her driver that she was taking her to meet the pawns at the institute. After the driver made a few calls, he agreed to take them. I wondered how the game master agreed to the new friendship between the other woman and Anna. He had always been so careful of all his pawns. Maybe, he was so unafraid of everyone and so confident about himself, he knew that even if they were against him, he was untouchable. Maybe, his confidence towards himself was relevant. We had been at it for months but we were still no where close to finding the girls.
When Anna and the other woman reached our institute, they called Henry. Henry collected me from my room. The next thing I knew, I was sitting in front of the other woman.